Thread: Shaving, As It Was Then, As It Is Now

SRP is a great place for anyone who wants to learn as so many here have been so generous, sharing what took in many case years of agony and ectasy of their findings. This forum has become the principle vehicle for promoting and growing a lost art, that once found grows a joy in something an ordinary man living in our time would never would experience otherwise. Rich is the man who can turn and ordinary shave into moments pleasure that are savoured each day. I would like to thank all of the members that have helped me with great tips and ideas that allow me to be my own personal barber and honester. I have emplyed myself and fired myself many times as I go through accelerated growth spurts listening, learning and sharing.
I was wondering how many members share my thoughts on how important it is to the future of Straight Razor Shaving the regular folk that spend time here have become. Many like myself are not professional Honmeisters, Barbers or merchants, but collectively our contributions make the former able to grow in their fields. Generally, I have found most members polite and arrogance is not the rule of the day, after all, men who shave with such passion are gentlemen indeed.
I wonder if my great gradfather who lived in a time of less abundance enjoyed his shave as mch as I do? A properly honed razor with good technique should not just get rid of whiskers, but all the things that wear us down each day. Even if the shave lasts just minutes, how could anyone past or present not conclude it the best part of the day?
Mike

I agree with you completely.


On an interesting tangent, I had a discussion about this very thing with a friend of mine today. He shaves once a week with an electric, and just walks around looking like a hobo most of the time. (not for style, just because he hates shaving that much)

I tried to explain to him how wonderful it is to get a real shave, and the pride of getting a beautifully smooth and comfortable shave from a razor you honed yourself, and the entire point was simply lost on him.

My great grand pop had eight boys and nine girls in his house. With seventeen kids running around he probably did not have much time for the shave den. Although I am pretty certain that he had a straight, he died in the 1930's the cartridge was not around for many years to come and the safety was somewhat of a new fangled instrument. He moved to this country from the old world where he was living somewhat in the fast lane. He had met, married and started a family with his mrs in all under a year then moved to the US. So he really did not have time to research what he was doing and really did not have the time to go get the best of the best. Since my family has a tendency to trash anything their parents shaved with and buy new I have no hard evidence of what he used. But its pretty safe to say that he probably obtained what he needed from a neighborhood blacksmith. No one ever talked about him in the shave den as this was a job to get over and done with as soon as possible. I am the first generation to enjoy the task.

So I am fairly certain of what he used.

Gentlemen,

I agree with everything you say about this delightful forum on a lost art: the art of straight razor shaving.

I, too, become rich by this expertise on the art of shaving given by experts here. And, yes, the conversations are held as if we were sitting at the coffee table. There are no pretenses, no sense of superiority by some, no, none of that. Instead, you gentlemen shavers behave and express your views, and expertise, as gentlemen.

Thank you.

Regards,

Obie

This forum, the information I have found here, and the expertise that everyone here has been willing to share, is simply amazing.

My dad wasnt around to show me how to shave properly (and I think he uses cartridges anyway), and my step-dad and I never got along, so I had to learn myself. When I found I had allergies and shaving was a real pain (literally), I started looking and found SRP.

Since learning off you guys, I enjoy shaving and no longer have a butchered face for days after a shave.

I honestly cant thank people here enough.

To ensure that places like SRD and other vendors are able to stay in business, I make sure that I order from them as regularly as I can, even when products might cost a bit less to purchase locally here in Australia (not often that I find that though). My biggest concern is whether sites like this will be around in 10-12 years time when I will be wanting to teach my son.

Of late, I have started to think that I had better start accumulating some razors and other gear for him now, just on the off chance that it wont be available in years to come, which is really sad.

As others have said, its a very respectful environment, and the experts are always very generous and ready to help out.

Originally Posted by wedwards

This forum, the information I have found here, and the expertise that everyone here has been willing to share, is simply amazing.

My dad wasnt around to show me how to shave properly (and I think he uses cartridges anyway), and my step-dad and I never got along, so I had to learn myself. When I found I had allergies and shaving was a real pain (literally), I started looking and found SRP.

Since learning off you guys, I enjoy shaving and no longer have a butchered face for days after a shave.

I honestly cant thank people here enough.

To ensure that places like SRD and other vendors are able to stay in business, I make sure that I order from them as regularly as I can, even when products might cost a bit less to purchase locally here in Australia (not often that I find that though). My biggest concern is whether sites like this will be around in 10-12 years time when I will be wanting to teach my son.

Of late, I have started to think that I had better start accumulating some razors and other gear for him now, just on the off chance that it wont be available in years to come, which is really sad.

As others have said, its a very respectful environment, and the experts are always very generous and ready to help out.

I seriously doubt that SRP or Straight Shaving is in any danger of extinction. Fortunate for our generation, you don't have to be very wealthy to own a seven day set of straights like it was in the past. Cost is really not going to stop someone from shaving with a straight, actually if you had to you can save lots of money over any other method available today. One or two razors will last your lifetime and maybe your child's if cared for properly. Of course much has to be learned, but so much reward when learned.
On the other end, there are razor makers that produce unique razors that are coveted by the kings and the most wealthy that cost more than you can imagine. This is a grassroots movement, very much like bluegrass music and other Trad genres. It is to be enjoyed by anyone fortunate enough to hear about it from all kinds of media, and of course the most important of all, from father to son. I taught my son the art and it is a very special bond we have and he God willing will do likewise. Shout it from the tallest mountain, it is growing faster than anyone ever thought it would. I often wonder what goes through Lynn's mind and other original members when they look at his website and all of the other shaving ones that have sprung up. He is like the Bill Monroe of Straight Shaving.
I wish I knew more of this history to tell you because Lynn was not the only one and others that know more history can tell you how he started. I do know books are popping up on razors and it will happen soon that some of the original members of this forum will without a doubt have new books written on the Straight razor movement.
Historically, the larger picture of Straight razor decline was literally a brainwashing scheme started by the gillettes and empowered by Madison Avenue advertizers. As the people of the world get frustrated with being told what to think and how to shave, grassroots movements takehold and you end up with lots of people with common sense getting back to the basics and having a good time. Try to stop that if you can. Bill Monroe worked so hard in his life, but bluegrass and other trad music persist from generation to genration despite the pop culture.
Miike

Yeah I certainly hope you are right. There does seem to be a bit of an increase in interest in both straight and DE shaving of recent times - hope that continues. Maybe the economy has done something good for wet shaving?

The economy might have something to do with it, but I think it goes to a certain extent to a rebellion against the emasculation of men. It's old, it's sharp, it's "dangerous", it looks cool, people fear it- it reminds me of the more extreme sports- to a lesser extent the popular crap like basketball and football or car racing- but mostly MMA, ironman competitions, paintball, whitewater kayak/rafting, biathlons/shooting, mountain biking and rock climbing. Violent and dangerous and sexy. There was a book that my wife got me a few years ago called The Dangerous Book for Boys (link is to the introduction to the book) which has recently been packed for our upcoming move. There were all kinds of Boy Scout-like activities in there that were pretty neat.

There's a cultural shift going on among the guys that used to be feminists (and maybe still are) that it is okay to be a man, to like and do manly things. We don't have to be just like women to get them to like us, and a man acting like a woman doesn't make the world more just either.

Funnily enough, it's happening to women too. There's also a big resurgence in knitting among women these days- knitting groups springing up all over the country, often with the name "Stitch 'n Bitch" for women to gather and do something their grandmothers did while talking about their men the way their grandmothers did. The feminist movement back in the 60's-70's really pushed women to get away from activities such as sewing and knitting, and now it's becoming popular again.

I think straight shaving is part of this on the men's side.
J.

Originally Posted by jfreaksho

There's a cultural shift going on among the guys that used to be feminists (and maybe still are) that it is okay to be a man, to like and do manly things. We don't have to be just like women to get them to like usJ.

Gotta say - there's a funny paradox with how you can get into the 'manly' and 'scary' straight razor, but get absorbed with soaps / creams and making nice lathers... kind of a fusion between manly and feminine.

Though I guess there's also guys who manage to keep it basic and don't get caught up in all the extra lotions and potions.

Back to topic
My grandfather would have started with a straight, but he died over 20 years ago when I was in my mid teens - shaving wasn't really something I thought of.

A few thoughts re shaving in the past:

• Barbers - did they give daily shaves to regular customers, before work shaves? Was it relatively cheap (like getting a before work coffee)
• Home shavers - did most people shave daily or only those doing 'white collar' work (similar to today)
• In old movies and books you can see images of men shaving, including the outdoor shave - was this a daily thing or just the going out to church or special occasions?
• Barber manuals (there's some online) - do they mention any of this sort of thing?
• Anyone know of any shaving histories?
• Anyone considered interviewing people who were pre-safety razor era? Would be interesting to get some insights into this period and also why they shifted from straights. (Though these men would be pretty old now).***

I'm guessing there would have been similar patterns to today's people with regards to shaving - though the barber shop shave is the big difference... why get someone else to do this?


***Could we create a separate post for people to list interviews with pre-safety razor men?

***Maybe post some interviews here?? Great to here some stories

Apologies for creating more questions than answers - but I guess that's a starting point.

All the best,
Michael

If it wasn't for SRP I almost certainly wouldn't be straight shaving today. I'd still be sending cartridges to the landfill and not even knowing there is a better way.

After spending more and more time around the internet on boards dedicated to other topics of interest to me, I find that SRP continues to be the most civil place on the internet even though most members seem to have very different world views than i do. We all get along remarkably well and that is due in no small part to the gentle but well considered direction of our team of mods. You guys know who you are and don't get told half as often as you should what a wonderful job you do. I am very thankful.

My grandfather was a DE shaver and I have heard his old gear is going to good use. I wouldn't mind owning some of it one day just for nostalgia's sake and because he was an important man to me, but that seems unlikely to happen. No big deal though because I am gathering history to me and will pass that on when the day comes. Of this I am also grateful, but primarily to this whole community. Thank-you very much gentlemen and ladies all.

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